The Golden Dress
by SilverGlimmers
Summary: Barry escorts two different women in golden dresses to two different events. Very different outcomes.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a short drabble from a 5 minute challenge on tumblr. I'm posting it now because I was inspired to write another chapter that finishes it out. Based on the behind-the-scenes pics of filming for episode 2x10. Very short, not my normal!**

 **Chapter 1**

The beautiful twinkling lights reminded him of junior prom, despite this being a Christmas ball. Barry straightened his bow tie nervously as Patty approached, looking beautiful in her champagne gold colored dress. She raised her arms into dance position with a tiny laugh, and he fell into position as well.

The music was slow, which was perfect because he was really nervous about stepping all over her toes, that was typical for him. Iris had giggled over and over as he practically fell all over his feet at junior prom. He'd love it if she were here now so he could show her how improved he was. He hadn't stepped on Patty's foot once…yet.

"Barry?" Patty was looking up at him with a questioning look.

"Sorry, what?"

"I asked if you wanted to come to my brother's house for Christmas. My father is gone but we still do Christmas every year together. It would be nice for you to meet him." Her eyes were bright and questioning.

"Oh…uh…that would be great…but I'm not sure what Joe and Iris will be doing for Christmas. Let me check with them first."

Her eyes dimmed slightly. "Sure, yeah, no big deal…"

Barry's cell phone started to ring. He stepped away with an apology and pulled it from his pocket. "Hello?"

"Barry. I didn't know who else to call." She sounded close to tears.

"Iris? What's wrong?" Barry stepped further away from Patty, completely diverted. Iris had left town two days ago to look for her brother. Barry was the only one she had told about it.

"I found him, but he's in trouble. And Francine is in the hospital and I think this might be it and I don't know what I should do…" her voice drifted away.

"Okay I'll be right there. We'll figure it out. Let me just change and I can be there in ten minutes."

"Change? Oh–Barry I forgot it was your big ball with Patty tonight. I'm so sorry, I forgot. It can wait. Stay and dance with Patty first–"

"No it's fine. She'll understand. I'll see you in a few minutes." Barry hung up and looked Patty's way. "I'm sorry, I have to go. Iris is having some major problems and I need to see what I can do for her. So sorry. You understand right?" He gave her a pleading look.

Patty crossed her arms. "I thought this was our evening together. Nothing was supposed to interrupt it." She tried to hide her disappointment but it was written all over her face.

"I know, I'm sorry. This just came up." He was already stepping away, before he realized he should give her a kiss goodbye and moved closer to do so. "I'll make it up to you. I promise." He barely waited for her small nod before he was gone, moving quickly across the dance floor to wherever Iris was waiting.

He couldn't stop the memory of junior prom that popped into his head as he left, how Iris's date had canceled at the last minute and he had insisted she accompany him and Becky to the prom anyway. Iris had been so sad that night he had danced with her almost exclusively to make her feel better, and Becky had stared daggers at them from the punch bowl.

His relationship with Becky had fizzled quickly after that…


	2. Chapter 2

_**This story is a continuation of the drabble that became chapter 1, and is inspired by the pictures of Candice and Grant at the Golden Globes. (You know the ones!) Sorry for mingling real life and fiction, my brain just had to write this. I'm not saying anything about real life people and whats going on in their lives, I just stole it all for westallen goodness. :)**_

 _ **Chapter 2**_

Barry stood at the foot of the stairs, buttoning the jacket of his tuxedo. He checked his watch.

"Iris, come on! We're going to be late!"

Her voice preceded her, drifting down the stairs to him. "It is beyond ironic that you of all people are lecturing me about being late, Barry Allen."

Barry had his mouth open, ready with a witty reply, when his throat dried up completely.

It wasn't Iris coming down the stairs to him, it was some kind of goddess from on high.

Her hair was sleek and left down, brushed back behind her ears. Her dress–her dress!–was flowing gold, clinging to her body, angles and straight lines on top forming a plunging neckline down to the gently cascading skirt that was right at that moment pulled aside, exposing a shapely leg as she held it in one hand so she could descend safely on her high-heeled shoes. Her makeup just amplified the regal aura she was giving off. She was a queen. A goddess. An unattainable divine creature suitable only to be worshiped by mere mortals from afar.

Barry stared, mouth wide open, mind completely blank except for three letters.

"Wow…" his voice was a hushed whisper that she barely heard, but it caught her attention all the same.

"Too much? I really loved this dress and this is the first chance I've had to wear it. Do you think I'll stand out?"

A long whistle came from behind Barry. "Oh you'll stand out. You'll definitely stand out." Wally was standing behind him, looking her up and down. "I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing at the moment." He looked over at Barry, who still hadn't been able to verbalize anything beyond his first word. "What do you think, Barry?"

Barry nodded wordlessly for a second. "Yes, no, yes, you will totally stand out." He pulled himself together. "You look ama–haa–" Any leftover air in Barry's lungs was quickly expelled as Iris turned and he finally caught sight of the sheer panels of fabric that lined the side. He wheezed, quickly turning to Wally so he could actually breathe again.

"Amazing," he finished weakly.

With a grin, Wally reached over and closed Barry's still open mouth. "Dude, really. That's my sister."

Iris rolled her eyes. "Please, don't think you get to be my bodyguard all of a sudden just because we discovered each other's existence." She smacked his arm with her purse. "Who was it again that got you out of serious trouble?"

"Yeah, that was Barry and the Flash, actually, you just did the finding." Wally turned to Barry. "So you get to be her protector tonight, Barry. Don't let Joe or me down."

Barry nodded, suddenly very serious. "Will do."

A honk intruded on the moment. Wally peeked out at the limo that had just pulled up. "Wow. This is a fancy shindig."

Iris smiled. "CCPN goes all out for the journalism awards dinners. I'm lucky I get to go this year."

"Well that's what happens when you're good. Soon you'll be there because you're nominated." Barry grinned her way, clearly believing what he was saying. She gave him a grateful smile.

Wally rolled his eyes. "Please, you don't have to butter her up anymore she's already taking you as her plus one. Still think she should be taking me, but whatever…"

"Do you have any idea how I'd be judged if I took my brother to one of these things? This is where all the heavy hitters show off their trophy wives and eye candy, I can't take my _brother_."

Barry hid a smile. Wally had been living with them for three months since Francine passed away, but he and Iris already argued like siblings.

Wally pointed at Barry. "You're taking Barry. That's almost the same thing."

"Barry is not almost like my brother! Barry is–" she fumbled for the right words, taking a moment longer than she should have. Even Barry looked her way, waiting for her to finish. Finally she managed. "Barry is my best friend. It's not the same."

Barry tried not to let her words go to his head. Ever since he and Patty broke up he and Iris had grown closer and rebuilt their friendship. They were back to the closest of friends. Shortly after he left in the middle of the ball to help Iris, Patty told him she didn't think it was going to work and applied for a transfer. He hadn't been able to argue, he was still deep in the midst of new West family members and emotions in the family were flying everywhere.

The night of the ball, Barry had helped extricate Wally from some serious trouble involving drag racers and a large debt and then been steadfastly by her side as Iris stayed with Francine, who had been hospitalized and terminal. He and Wally had made a tentative friendship, Iris and Wally had carefully begun forming a relationship that should have been present their entire lives. After Francine passed away Joe had invited Wally to live with his newly discovered family. The last three months had been interesting as they explored the new dynamic, but Barry had done his best to make the transition as smooth as possible and support every party as they dealt with the change. In between that and dealing with Zoom and Earth 2 portals as the Flash, the months had gone quickly. It was probably better Patty had broken it off, he was dedicating all his time nowadays to job, Flash duties or home.

Iris gestured to the door. "We should go. Bye Wally." She pecked him on the cheek. He grumbled a farewell, but his smile belied his grumpy tone.

Barry offered his arm and opened the door for her, then turned to shut the door behind him. Wally caught his eye and pointed to Iris' departing back. "Watch her!" he mouthed, and Barry gave him a serious nod and a thumbs up.

The limo ride was mostly quiet, since neither had actually ridden in one before. Barry looked out the windows and tried not to notice the split in Iris' dress that was showing leg up to her upper thigh.

"Thanks for coming with me, Barry." She looked luminous, her smile shining across the limo at him.

"Anything for my best friend."

Iris sat back and stretched her legs out. "Remember how you wanted to get one of these for junior prom?"

He laughed lightly. "Yeah, we couldn't swing it financially. It was better anyway, once Dan Pinkerton canceled on you Joe drove all three of us and it was more fun. We all sat in the back and gave him directions with our fake accents even though he knew where he was going."

Iris smiled. "You and I gave him directions, Becky just sat by the window and looked annoyed."

"Really? I don't remember I thought she was having fun with us."

"Nope," Iris murmured "it was just us."

Barry's brow cleared as he let the memory go. "Huh…" he glanced her way quickly and then away, as if afraid he'd be caught staring too long. He looked out the window again.

Iris fingered the silky material of her skirt. "I love this dress. Didn't Patty wear a dress this color at the ball you two went to? I remember you worrying about the color of your tie before I told you to go black."

Barry's face went blank. "Did she? I don't remember…" he searched his memory for a few moments and managed to recall. "Oh, yeah well it _was_ gold. But the color wasn't as…bright. It wasn't as…deep." He made a vague gesture with his hands, trying to put into words what he had finally pulled out of his memory. Patty had looked lovely, but Iris looked incredible. There was no comparison. He'd forgotten what Patty had worn that night but he knew this memory of Iris would be burned into his memory for the rest of his life. Finally he just gave up and let his hands drop with a sigh and a smile. He looked at her across the car, gleaming gold and brown against the black seat cushions and looking indescribably beautiful. No, he was wrong. The image of her this way was burned into his mind for all eternity. "You look really beautiful tonight, Iris."

Iris smiled softly. "Thanks, Barry." He returned her smile and looked out the window again. She gazed at his profile, remembering the last day she spent with her mother. It had been difficult and emotional to realize that Francine was dying, and after saying she wanted nothing to do with her and sending her away, all Iris had wanted right then had been a little more time. She had held her mother's hand, taken in her sunken eyes and hollowed cheeks, and realized that she was weeping…

 _Francine's eyes were also full of tears. She reached up her other hand to softly touch her daughter's cheek, hesitant as if afraid Iris would jerk away from her touch. But Iris had stayed, and more tears flowed as Francine gently ran the backs of her hands down her cheek._

 _"My girl," her voice was weak. "My baby girl. I'm so sorry."_

 _Iris said nothing. She had no idea what to say. Francine seemed to take it as encouragement._

 _"When I left, I was at my lowest point. I had failed my husband, and I had failed my daughter. I thought it would be better for both of you if you didn't have me in your life. And then I found out I was pregnant. I had failed you and Joseph, I couldn't fail this one too. So I got clean, and this time I was all he had. I couldn't fail him so I stayed clean. And when I gave birth to Wally, that beautiful baby boy, I wanted nothing more than to bring him home so we could be a family. But I was ashamed, and I didn't know how to make amends for my actions, or for leaving. So I stayed away. And now, how I wish I had been brave enough to come back. I missed all of you growing up. I'm so sorry…" Francine's voice seemed to fade as she stopped to breathe for a moment._

 _Iris couldn't hold it in anymore. "Mom…mom…" She leaned forward to lay her head on her mother's shoulder, still weeping. She felt a gentle hand stroke her hair._

 _After a short time a soft knock on the door caused Iris to lift her head, wiping her eyes. Barry's head poked around the door, his eyes soft with concern. "Joe is on his way down, and Wally's in the waiting room."_

 _"Oh, Wally. Is he–?"_

 _"He's fine. A…friend helped him out and everything's settled." Barry gave her a meaningful look, and she understood that the Flash had been involved. She breathed a sigh of relief and gave him a grateful smile._

 _"Thank you."_

 _"No problem. Do you want me to send Wally in?"_

 _"Um, maybe just give us a few minutes?"_

 _"Sure, no problem." He smiled briefly and shut the door._

 _Iris turned back to Francine. The older woman suddenly looked shrewd in spite of her frailty. She gave her daughter a searching look. "He seems like a nice boy."_

 _"He is. My best friend."_

 _"Best friend? Or more than that?"_

 _Iris stared at her. "Is it that obvious?"_

 _Francine's smile was tender and poignant. "Maybe only to a mother."_

 _Iris looked away. "It's…complicated. Things got really strange for a while." She shrugged, unable to put anything into words._

 _"All this time I thought Eddie was the love of your life, but the way you two look at each other I'm starting to think otherwise." Iris stared at her, disconcerted that she could see so much. With everything else going on she really didn't want to discuss this at the moment, and she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to discuss it with this particular woman._

 _"Iris…" Francine reached for her hand, and Iris placed it in hers. "I know I have no right to give you advice, but take it from one who knows how much it hurts to make the wrong decisions and lose the love of your life. Don't let him slip away. You'll regret it forever."_

 _Her mother's eyes were pleading, filled with her own memories of the past. Iris knew without a doubt that her mother was referring to her father. She met her mother's eyes and saw the earnest truth and love there, the overwhelming desire for her daughter to be happy, even if she wouldn't be there to see it. Overcome, she tried to hold back tears this time but failed as she bent over to hug her again. She felt the soft caress on her hair begin again as her mother repeated the words._

 _"Don't let him slip away…"_

"Iris?" Barry's voice jolted her out of her thoughts. "We're here."

"Right." She smiled at him as he got out and extended his hand to help her. "Do me a favor and be my watchdog tonight, I don't feel like getting hit on by every drunk there."

"My pleasure."

They walked in together and were almost immediately overwhelmed with attention, introductions, handshakes and hungry glances aimed at Iris. Barry made sure he was never more than a few feet away from her at all times, staring daggers at anyone who looked like they might want to hit on her. Iris made small talk with her journalism peers before they went in to be seated. Barry was introduced to her co-workers and associates, and always as "My friend, Barry." He couldn't shake the thought that if she didn't want to be hit on maybe she should just pretend he was her boyfriend for the night. But that opened a can of worms they hadn't even whispered about so maybe not…

As happy as he was to be here with Iris tonight to support her and watch her shine, Barry couldn't shake the feeling that he really shouldn't be.

Eventually he slid his hand around her elbow and suggested they go sit down. Iris finished her conversation with Scott and they moved to the main room. He guided her to their table, hand barely on her back, taking in the soft lights and beautiful ambiance. It didn't make him feel much better. He frowned at Scott a few tables away. "That's your boss?"

Iris looked too. "Yes."

"He's young."

"Youngest editor-in-chief at CCPN ever. He's rising fast." Iris laid her purse on the table and straightened her dress.

Barry grunted in reply. Iris gave him a concerned look. "Everything okay?"

"Fine," he practically growled the word, which made it obvious that everything was not fine.

Iris gave him a look. "What's the matter?"

He pursed his lips for a moment, debating, and then leaned closer to speak in a lower tone. "It's just that everyone is here with their partner or date, and you're here with your best friend. The way Scott looked at you, maybe you two should have come together." He mumbled the last words, feeling disgruntled and lacking.

"I had a plus one. That means I can bring whoever I like."

"A plus one usually means you bring someone you're with or are interested in being with, not your best friend since childhood."

"That's true."

Her agreement just made him feel worse. "So why didn't you just ask someone you were interested in?"

"I did."

He was still frowning at the table when her words finally sank in. He looked up slowly, repeating them in his head, and stared at her across the table, gleaming eyes and golden radiance. He couldn't have heard that right.

But her face told him he had. It was open and soft, waiting for him to catch up, smiling gently with her eyes and her lips.

"Oh." It was all he could even manage to think, much less say.

Iris beamed at him and shifted closer. "Let's take a selfie and send it to Wally."

Barry smiled, still trying to take in the last few minutes. "You trying to rub it in?" He pulled out his phone and held it up as Iris leaned in just behind him. They both studied the picture and noted their soft contented smiles and closeness. Barry added an emoji and sent it. Iris grabbed his phone and laughed at the emoji he'd chosen. It was a smirking one, full of innuendo.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She gave him a shrewd look.

Barry shrugged, blushing. "I'll let him take it however he wants. He can figure it out."

Iris laughed softly and sent herself the picture, then picked up her own phone. Barry watched her.

"What are you doing?"

"Sending my brother a picture too." She gave him a mischievous look over her phone, eyes glinting with laughter.

"The same one?"

"Yup." She finished adding some text and showed him. He read for a moment.

"Avec mon ami?" He pulled a face. "I didn't study french in high school, you did, translation please."

"It means 'with my friend.'"

He just looked at her. "But I thought…I mean, you just said–"

Her hand landed on his. "Barry. In french, ami can mean friend or…something more than that."

"Oh." His face softened. "I get it."

She smiled at him, glad to see it. "Good. So it can be 'avec mon ami', which just means with my friend, or it can mean" her voice became lower and more sultry as she affected her best french accent "avec mon ami…"

Barry's eyes bulged and his throat went dry. Iris caught his reaction and smiled, then sent the picture to Wally.

"How–" Barry cleared his throat "how will he know which one?"

Her other hand moved across the table and drifted over his, fingers trailing fire behind them. "Oh, he'll figure it out."

The rest of the night passed in delirious amazement.

They were back in the limo, this time sitting on the same seat close together, when Iris turned his way.

"Do you remember what color Becky's dress was at junior prom?"

Barry's brows came together in confusion. "Why does that matter?"

"It just does. What color was it?"

"I–" he thought hard. "I don't remember. I do remember that yours was blue. That royal blue color that looks amazing on you."

Iris smiled. She'd known what the answer would be. "Becky wore green."

Barry shrugged. "If you say so."

"I only remember because you wore a tie and vest to match her dress, and I remember how good you looked in them."

He grinned. "I guess we both only remember what really matters then."

"Yup." Her lips were smiling as he lowered his head to press his own against them. "I guess we do."


End file.
